Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible (#809) came out more than twenty years ago to critical acclaim, yet it still remains relevant today. An American Baptist family goes on a mission to convert the inhabitants of the small village of Kilanga in what was then the Belgian Congo on the verge of independence. The mission does not go well.
Told in the voices of the wife and four daughters of the Reverend Nathan Price, the story of cultural clashes, dysfunctional family and political unrest unfolds from distinctly different points of view. There's the oldest daughter Rachel, blond and vain, a regular Mrs. Malaprop who longs for a normal American teen life. The identical twins Leah and Adah are separated by Adah's brain damage. Leah takes to native ways after failing to connect to her adored father, but Adah does not speak aloud, instead amusing herself with observations of those around her and her ability to read forwards and backwards. Ruth May at five is the baby of the family, headstrong and prone to throwing fits to get her own way. Then there's Orleanna, the abused wife who feels guilty for landing her girls in this primitive place instead of refusing to follow her husband on his unsanctioned mission trip. It's not a pretty picture. In fact, I loathed almost all of the characters in the book, and I think, in some ways, that was Ms. Kingsolver's point.
The Price family cannot function as a cohesive unit, and neither can The Congo. There are so many levels at play here, you could spend days discussing it. It's no better there today than when the fictional Prices tried to conquer Africa for Jesus. It does make you think, though.
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